Saunders upset with referee

Dean Saunders was "flabbergasted" after another controversial refereeing decision denied his Doncaster side the opportunity to claim three points from Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.

Referee Darren Drysdale opted not to award a penalty as Seb Hines felled Chris Brown in the box in a frantic first half on Teesside, with Rovers going on to withstand heavy pressure after the break to earn a goalless draw.

Fellow npower Championship strugglers Portsmouth recovered from an early two-goal deficit to win 4-3 on Saturday and consign Rovers to third tier football next season.

Saunders slammed referee Mick Russell's decisions in the Pompey game, and has now turned his attentions to Drysdale.

"I thought we played really well on Saturday and you know what happened, I'm still trying to get over it," said Saunders.

"We've done well, we've resisted, and there were a lot of good performances out there and we got done by the referee again. After the week we've just had, how hasn't he given a penalty for Chris Brown? I'm flabbergasted.

"We changed the bus tonight, I thought that might change the luck. But when we didn't give the penalty I thought 'here we go again'."

For Middlesbrough, the stalemate coupled with wins for Blackpool and Cardiff saw them drift four points off the play-off places with two games remaining.

And if the two clubs win their games on Saturday, Boro's evening game with second-placed Southampton could be rendered a dead rubber for Tony Mowbray's side.

He said: "We'll keep pushing until the final day. There's a four-point gap, two games to go, so we've got to win two football matches. That's easier said than done as the next game is at home against a team that could clinch promotion that day, so let's wait and see."